A SWEET COLOURED BEAR!

I often admire coloured teddy bears, made by my artist friends. My problem was making one LOL! I just couldn't do it. Everytime I thought about a new bear, I ALWAYS chose traditional colours. That is until my friend, Deborah Burnham, gifted me with the most gorgeous sea foam green mohair. It was so pretty, I had to use it and I'm so glad I did. I'm pleased to introduce Sophie, who is on her way to live in the U.S. I just had to show her off!

MAKING TIME!!

Boy I get frustrated with myself. I got Photoshop elements 7 for Christmas over a year ago - I had really wanted it but like a lot of things, you have to make time for it. It's been installed on my computer for ages and every time I went to use it, I ended up going back to my old Photoshop elements 3, because it was simpler and I already knew how to use it.

I am a hoarder of all things, especially magazines and books. Every month, I buy new Stampington magazines - they are sooooo full of eye candy and every month I would promise myself I would get around to playing with Photoshop elements 7 and learn to do some of the altered art I adore. I now realize that if I don't MAKE time to learn how to use it, it will be obsolete soon LOL! So, I made a promise to myself to take some of the time I spend online each day (WAY TOO MUCH!) and systematically play with elements 7, until I have mastered it. Wish me luck :o)

These are just a few things I played with today - VERY simple exercises, but hey, it's a start LOL! Enjoy!

Our grandson, Corson

Removing some of the colour

Burgundy trillliums

Removing some of the colour

Adding a blur filter

Our grandson chasing bubbles

Removing some of the colour

My parents on their honeymoon

Adding a vingette

FAST FUN ON MOTHER'S DAY!

What makes a little boys heart go "pitter patter" - wheels that move and move fast LOL! Today, after delivering a lovely Mother's day treat, our grandson, Corson, got to do what he loves most of all - drive the ATV at full speed.

There is a park just around the corner from our house, with a large grassy area, just perfect for a small ATV. He's driven a few times already, but this is the first time we got the chance to watch.

Wow, it made my heart pitter patter, too, but not for the same reason - Corson was zipping all over the field, in and around obstacles so fast, we could barely see him. Almost gave us a heart attack LOL! He's very adept at manipulating the ATV around the trees and playground equipment and the park was empty because of the cold weather, so it was perfect. It would have been nicer, though, if his speed was a tad sloooooower :o) But boys will be boys, and when we saw John riding the ATV on two wheels, we now know what to expect in the future "sigh".

Ready to go!

 I understand, go slow!

I'll be a perfect angel!

Here we go!

Nice and easy!

See, I'm doing everything right!

Hmmm, I wonder if they will notice if I go a little faster?

Here comes the tricky part - the obstacles!

If the picture is blurry, will they know how fast I'm going? :o)

Gotta make sure I don't hit anything!

Aw what the heck, a boy has to enjoy himself LOL!

Next, I'm gonna learn how to do that!!!

OLD DOOLAN

I am definitely on a roll :o) I was wondering how to finish off this bear and I liked him so much, I decided minimal accessories were needed, so I just made him an old fashioned leather collar, decorated with vintage bells. He looks brilliant with it.

Doolan is 4 inches and is made from a longer Shulte mohair than I usually use. It's a traditional rich brown in colour. He has distressed wool felt paw pads, excelsior and stainless steele shot stuffing, amber glass eyes and a waxed nose. Doolan's paws, face and ears have been shaded with permanent fabric paints and this gives him a wonderful vintage look. Please email me for more details if you are interested in Doolan. Thanks for peeking!

WEE PADRAIG AND HIS SHOE

Wow, two blog posts it two days - must be a record for me :o) I worked on a few small bears, while we were on holiday and I am finishing them up this week. This is the first one "Padraig and his Shoe". Padraig is 3 1/2 inches tall and made from hand-dyed, beige Shulte mohair. The mohair has been aged and distressed, leaving small bald spots. Padraig has leather paw pads, that have been distressed, leaving tiny bits of exelsior showing through the holes. He is firmly stuffed with excelsior and gently weighted with stainless steel shot. His face, ears and paws have been shaded with permanent fabric paints.

Padraig sits in a brown, antique child's button up shoe. It is the perfect size to hold Padraig and show him off. If you are interested in Padraig or have any questions, please feel free to email me. Thanks for peeking!

ALMOST MISSED THEM!

Wow, spring has sprung, so they say LOL! Every year, I look forward to seeing the trilliums and wakerobins come into bloom - they usually appear by the May 24th weekend. This year the weather has been wacky - hardly any snow, it got warm VERY early and then cold again. We were on holidays in Pennsylvania last week and hubby had knee surgery when we returned, so it's been hectic here. The other evening, we were out for a drive and Neil noticed some trilliums in bloom - I couldn't believe it as it was barely the end of April. So when I came home, I checked our yard and there they were, in full bloom. If we hadn't seen the ones on our drive, I would have totally missed the ones in our yard. So I snapped some quick pictures, before they're gone :o) Hope you enjoy them.

I have also been trying to finish a few bears for an update. I finally have the basic bears done, now I just have to decide what I want to do with them. One of them is my first coloured bear - the softest sea green! Here's a quick peek - any suggestions gratefully accepted. :o)